Cascadia Advocate

Offering frequent news and analysis from the majestic Evergreen State and beyond, The Cascadia Advocate is the Northwest Progressive Institute's unconventional perspective on world, national, and local politics.

Monday, August 30, 2004

Republicans open bait-and-switch convention in New York

Party tries to drag moderates under extremist banner

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NEW YORK- As hundreds of thousands of protestors marched against the atrocities of the Bush administration, Republicans were gathering in a city where Democrats outnumber them 5-to-1 to hold their national convention.

The Republican platform this year is a huge disappointment to moderates. Extremist stances on everything from gay marriage to environmental measures have troubled many "middle-of-the-road" Republicans, such as Washington's former governor, Dan Evans.

Trying to preserve party unity, George W. Bush's 2000 presidential rival John McCain spoke at the Republican National Convention on Monday, dumping heaps of praise on Bush for the war in Iraq but failing to talk about the cost, the failure to find WMD's, or the insurgency that has prevented Iraq from becoming a stable country.

Rudolph Guiliani, praised as "America's Mayor" by many Republicans, was all into Kerry-bashing. During his speech, he tried to show the Republicans as "compassionate" and willing to reach across party lines. Clearly, though, as his remarks illustrated, he thinks Democrats are wrong:

I don’t believe we’re right about everything and Democrats are wrong. They’re wrong about most things. But — but — but, seriously, seriously, neither party has a monopoly on virtue. We don’t have all the right ideas. They don’t have all the wrong ideas.

But there would be ample time for Kerry-bashing. Guiliani's comments again illustrate that Republicans love taking congressional votes out of context. Whatever works to paint John Kerry as a dangerous liberal radical, which he certainly is not. And Guiliani tried to splash paint over John Edwards' campaign theme of "two Americas" but failed to make the case for why there's only one united America. Clearly, with so many Americans without work or health insurance, there are "two Americas".

My point about John Kerry being inconsistent is best described in his own words not mine. I quote John Kerry, ‘I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.’Maybe this explains John Edwards’s need for two Americas — one where John Kerry can vote for something and another one where he can vote against exactly the same thing.

And of course:

John Kerry’s record — John Kerry’s record of inconsistent positions on combating terrorism gives us no confidence that he’ll pursue such a determined, difficult course.

Guiliani's comments are not only absurd, but they don't make any sense. Patched-together criticism of John Kerry's optimistic plans for America clearly shows that Guiliani realizes that the administration can't even run on its own record.

It's a sad day when the Republicans have to pump hype into their convention to circulate their lies, like "compassionate" conservatism and the "conviction" of George W. Bush.